“Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn’t have said.” -Author Unknown

Here are some obscure (and not so obscure) tidbits that I have picked up as the mom of four boys. Maybe you’ll learn something. [more]

If you’ve been keeping up with fivecentnickel.com, then you already know that we’re moving out of state very soon. Yesterday my husband closed on our current house — we chose for me to give him power of attorney for the close to avoid bringing our young boys to the lawyer’s office. Everything went smoothly and, since we don’t buy our new house until next week, we are technically (at least on paper) homeless. But never fear! We negotiated a week’s stay and still have a roof over our heads. [more]

Raising4Boys participated in two carnivals this week. Here they are, along with links to our articles that were included in each.

The Carnival of Kid Comedy, which is up at the World’s Greatest Place to Live Insider, included “Throwing Eggs in the Kitchen.”

The Best of Me Symphony, which is up at The Owner’s Manual, included “Buying Legos on the Cheap.” Also included was “How Flexible Spending Accounts SHOULD Work” from fivecentnickel.com.

Worried about overpopulation? Well, in Korea they’re worried about underpopulation due to an overall birth rate of just 1.08 kids per woman. So what are they doing about it? Among other things, a number of financial institutions have begun offering perks to couples that have kids. For example, you can get a 2% discount on life insurance if you have a kid after signing up for a policy with Dongbu Insurance Co., and you get an extra 1% discount for each additional kid. Similarly, Woori bank offers a 0.5% interest rate reduction for families with three or more kids under the age of 20. And over at the Industrial Bank of Korea you can get a 0.1% increase in your interest rate for each new baby that you have, up to a maximum interest rate increase of 1%. Is it just me, or is there something a little creepy about this?

[Source: JoongAng Daily]

“Your children will become what you are; so be what you want them to be.” -David Bly

It’s late May, and school is almost out… In other words, it’s time to start thinking up some extra activities to keep the kids busy. With this in mind, I thought that it might be worth sharing the following… Did you know that theaters often have free (or very nearly so) morning movie showings geared toward kids? The details vary from theater to theater, but you can often take the kids to see select G or PG rated movies for next to nothing in the summer. Here are a few selections:

Regal Cinemas: Free movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 10 A.M. Check their web site for availability in your area.
AMC Theaters: Summer MovieCamp featuring a free movie every Wednesday morning at 10:30 at participating theaters starting June 21st.
CineMark: Summer Movie Clubhouse featuring movies for a dollar apiece (or 10 for $5 if you pre-buy a pack of tickets). Shows are at 10 A.M.
Crown Theaters: Children’s Film Festival featuring free admission for kids and parents/chaperones. They also have a rewards program for good grades. Straight A’s gets you two free movie tickets. All A’s and B’s gets you one free movie ticket. Finally, all B’s gets you a free medium popcorn.
Dickinson Theaters: Summer Vacation Movie Series — a ten week program with free showings of select G and PG rated movies.

[Source: pfBlueprint]

The Social Security Administration recently announced the most popular baby names from 2005. The top slot for boys goes to Jacob, whereas Emily edged our Emma for girls. Here are the top ten for each sex: [more]

Raising4Boys took part in three carnivals this week. Here they are, along with links to our posts that were included in each.

The Carnival of Kid Comedy, which is up at Kid Zoo, included “No-So-Intimidating PowerRanger Names.”

The Best of Me Symphony, which is up at The Owner’s Manual, included “Thank God for the Child Tax Credit.” Also included was “Don’t Change Your Oil Too Frequently” from fivecentnickel.com.

The Carnival of the Vanities, which is up at Accidental Verbosity, included “No Child Left Behind?.” Also included was Best High Mileage Cars from fivecentnickel.com.

Parenting Tip #573: When your four year old tells you that your one and a half year old is “throwing eggs in the kitchen, and they’re fresh,” you should run (not walk) to the scene of the crime because he’s probably telling the truth.